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Amateur with a big telescope! Help!


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At the beginning of the year I was quite ill, just as my bursary came in. I'm an art student that loves astrophotography so I went ahead and bought a Skywatcher 200P EQ5 with SynScan in quite a deluded state (I really wasn't well enough to think it through properly!). Anyway, as I got better it sunk in just how big the telescope was but I worked with it, and it was going well until we moved house! I've got no room for the tube! It's HUGE! So on reflection I've decided it's time to downsize. The only website I've found that do trade-ins are Rother Valley Optics. It's past their closing hours so I can't call them, however I would like to know if anyone has done a trade in with them before? Was it a reasonable offer? I've seen another topic on here that was singing their praises so that's a good sign! I'm looking to trade-in as I don't have much time to work on selling it and I also can't afford a new telescope without trading this one in first.

As for the trade in, what shall I trade it for?! I want a much smaller scope. The EQ5 mount is pretty big but I can work with it if I need to. I'm looking for a scope no more than £400 but still has tracking, is this reasonable? I'm looking to be able to view planets within the solar system, and some deep sky objects. I'm yet to see a nebula which is on my list of things I'm getting around to seeing.

Sorry for my lack of knowledge, I'm trying to learn as I go along.

Please help me out with any suggestions!

Thank you!

Chloe.

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I am happy to trade in the entire telescope, mount included if it means an easier life but still with good viewing! I want to attach my camera to the lens (Canon 550D), I currently use a T-ring which is easy, but some telescopes I've noticed have the lens at the base of the telescope and you look down in to them, can you still attach cameras to these?

Thank you for the welcome :laugh:

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I'm thinking that you probably can't really get a smaller mount and still do astrophotography unless you really want to work hard at it in which case swapping the OTA for something like an ED80 might be the best route. It won't be anything like as stunning as your current scope visually though.

Is it fair to say that the 200P is "lots too big" (otherwise I'd assume you'd try to live with it) and that you need something quite a bit smaller?

James

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A smaller scope for astrophotography is often something along the lines of a small ED refractor.

Unfortunately even small ED refractors are not inexpensive.

My thoughts are to post an exchange advert on UK Astro Buy and Sell saying Exchange 200P for a ???. The problem is I cannot think of what is a suitable exchange in terms of a similar cost.

If you stayed with a reflector then a straight swap of a 150P for a 200P perhaps.

You are unable to post here as you need 250 posts, unless someone else is looking for a 200P and has a suitable exchange item then UK AB&S is the only option I can think of, other then a retailer.

For information a small ED such as a WO 72 would be OK on an EQ5 for a start into AP, so if you went down the refractor option then you are looking at something like a 66-72mm ED refractor.

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Sorry to sound dumb but what does OTA stand for? I presume you mean the telescope tube? Can you see my amateur side shining through? Haha!

Thank you for the ideas.

The current telescope is far too big for safe storage. It's only going to get damaged here, I can't look after it properly as it doesn't fit anywhere. It's currently wrapped up in a lot of bedding behind the dining room table which is far from ideal. There just isn't anywhere else for it that's as safe as that. And no matter where I put it the cat seems to think that the bedding is for him to sleep on! Where I used to live it was permanently on its mount in my bedroom as there was plenty of room. That worked really well.

If I said "I want to trade the WHOLE thing, mount included", what scope would you suggest? Please bare in mind this is amateur photography. I can't even set up a webcam yet as I have a macbook. I've got to partition my hard drive with Windows to be compatible with all the webcams available :(

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The scopes linked are all MAK's and not really good for DSO imaging, the focal length is too long.

They can do planetary imaging however there are not that many planets and for this people tend to put a webcam on not a DSLR.

In my view, many will differ none are right for AP.

The 4SE is on an Alt/Az mount and that again is not right for longer exposure DSO imaging.

Small focal lengths are used to minimise the tracking errors, so the longer the focal length the more any tracking errors will beome apparent anf you got a poorer image.

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My limited experience (which involves a history of trying to find a way to avoid big mounts) suggests that you keep the EQ5. Your current ambitions will develop quickly and I suspect you'll soon discover that the EQ5 is the *minimum*. The 200P is too big on an EQ5 for astrophotography so you'll need to downsize that.

If you're interested in AP then have a look at the book 'Making Every Photon Count' by Steve Richards. It's not an exaggeration to think of it as 'the amateur imager's Bible'. It will also prove useful in making decisions about mounts and OTAs..

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Keep the mount, it is fine for basic AP, as long as the aim is realistic and you do not intend to rival hubble.

Look at: Fedastro

And if possible visit a local astro society there are 5 in E Sussex listed, and contact one or more about AP at the club.

With what you have you really need to change the 200P for a small scope. Still suggest a 70mm or thereabouts refractor although it will not be good for visual.

Could sell the 200P then buy a smaller replacement, which may be easier. The ED80 is that nice and an 80mm is a good all round scope they are around £350.

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I have no experience of this scope, but what about the 130PDS on the EQ5? It is the lightest, smallest newtonian with a focal length around the same as the ED80 but also twice as fast optically. And it is big enough for some pleasing viewing.

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For an example here is a recent post - in the Scopes/Whole Set up section presently that has an image taken with a WO Megrez 72.

SGL Link

It is an example of what is possible, the person who took it wrote an often quoted book on AP but the image is good and is from a 72mm scope, they give wide views that often look better.

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For an example here is a recent post - in the Scopes/Whole Set up section presently that has an image taken with a WO Megrez 72.

SGL Link

It is an example of what is possible, the person who took it wrote an often quoted book on AP but the image is good and is from a 72mm scope, they give wide views that often look better.

Thank you. I'm hardly understanding any of this though, I'm really amateurish in that I just attach a camera, point and hope for the best. I play with exposure times and see what happens. I'm desperately trying to keep up and understanding but I'm learning alone and I've only been learning on and off for a year, starting when I was quite ill! I'm really sorry for my ignorance on the matter :(

The general agreement is I should keep the mount. Thank you. I will look in to trading in the scope.

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If you're that pushed for space, I can't help wondering if astrophotoraphy is really a sensible ambition for the moment. If you didn't have that as a requirement then you could think about the Skymax 127 that you've already posted links to, which would be fine for planetary, lunar and solar observation (and imaging with the right cameras) and be ok for visual use on a fair number of DSOs. Alternatively there's the option of just going pretty much completely visual and replacing what you have now with a 200P dobsonian, which has the advantage of being able to stand in a corner and not occupy too much space (I built my own base, but I have a 250P dob that sits in a 20" square space in my office).

I think the recommendation to meet up with some people and look at a few scopes is probably sensible. We can make suggestions but the bottom line is that they have to work for you and the space you have available and we just can't tell you that.

James

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Photography is the main reason I own a telescope, so I am wanting to stick to that. I have knowledge on astronomy, just not very knowledgable on the equipment. I used to take astronomy lessons and I have an astronomy tutor who helps me with my telescope.

Size isn't completely restricted, but put it this way: My Skywatcher 200P barely fits in my mums Mini Cooper (2005, so not the tiny tiny old ones lol). Ditto my Vauxhall Corsa! There's not enough room in our garage for it, and my bedroom has downsized so unless I want to get rid of my bed, I can't keep it in there! The mount etc fits under the bed but the scope itself doesn't. There really is nowhere for it, it's being moved about the house routinely trying new 'spots'. If I can get a scope that is considerably smaller in length, doesn't matter about width, then it would make things a lot easier. However I would like to continue with the photography.

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In that case I think it has to be a small ED refractor such as the ED80 or one of the Williams Optics models already mentioned; something along those lines anyhow. They probably won't be very rewarding visually after the 200P, but they are relatively small and well-suited to astrophotography.

James

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